Turning Tables
by U may say that I'm a dreamer
Summary: *CHAPTER RELEASED* Tony & Tali begin a new life with one thing in common besides their DNA:Their love and loss for Ziva David. But it does not take long before Tony realises that he needs his daughter just as much as she needs him. This is a story of acceptance and love as they journey from Israel to Paris, hoping to mend the pieces of their broken world.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys, I'm giving this story a chance but I'm a little hesitant in doing so. So it would amazing if you could please read the first chapter and tell me what if you think its worth continuing or not. I know you don't have much to go on (it is only one chapter after all) but if you like what I've written, and want to read more, please tell me!**

 **Hope you enjoy.**

 **xx**

He threw the tennis ball up in the air once more and caught it with a single hand. Tony had been at this game for hours. He needed to keep his hands busy so his mind could keep focused and not wander like it did every other night. It was 3am in the morning and he had already checked on Tali 4 times. For the first three weeks, Tali would awake at odd times during the night. Sometimes crying for her mother and other times, crying for her father. Tony was convinced at one point that her relentless attempts to disrupt any peaceful rest was just fun game to her. But truth be told, Tony liked being needed. Even if it meant getting accustomed to insomnia. After all, he was never someone's everything before.

Even after Tali adjusted to a healthy sleep cycle, Tony would still wake up at 3am every morning and check on his daughter, like clockwork.

Tony did this every night, it was like a little ritual. He constantly needed reassurance that his daughter was doing okay. She was a toddler after all, who had just lost her mother. He kept telling himself that he needed to be there for her at a second's notice. But the truth was, Tony checked on his little girl every night because he had this irrational fear that she would disappear from his life one day, just as suddenly as she came into it. As if this all had been a dream.

It still was so hard to accept that he had a daughter. Anthony DiNozzo _had a child_. He went from DC's favourite playboy to a single parent in two seconds flat. Everything that had transpired over the last month was almost too much for him. He never said it out loud, but he was struggling. Juggling the sudden demand of being a father, finding a new way to live after leaving NCIS, accepting the sudden occurrence that _she_ was dead.

He couldn't say her name anymore. Every time he tried, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He associated her name with acceptance. And if he said it out loud, that Ziva was dead, it would be his reality. That it _really, truly_ did happen. Tony's life may have dramatically changed overnight but he still held onto the habit of running away from his feelings.

His father had been with him the entire time. It was comforting, as much as it was annoying. He needed space from Senior at times but the thought of handling Tali on his own scared the living daylights out of him. Tony knew eventually that he would have to assume his full role of being a father on his own, but he just wasn't ready yet. It didn't matter if Senior tried to convince him otherwise. What did he know about being a father? Tony wasn't exactly the poster kid for having the 'picture perfect' childhood after all. It didn't even matter when McGee sat him down and gave him a pep-talk. Hell, Gibbs could even take a shot at it but Tony was convinced that nothing would stick to his brain. And the small "Fatherhood for dummies" book that lay on his coffee table fully agreed with him.

"Abba," Tali announced herself with her small footsteps and her tired voice. Tony wondered if the kitchen light, that shone through his bedroom had woken her. He stood up and began to walk over to her, praying that once he put her back to bed, she would _stay_ asleep. She reached up as Tony bent down and wrapped her small hands around his neck. He had occupied the couch every night because she slept in his bed. He had immediate plans to leave DC to Israel and thus skipped out on baby shopping for cots and whatnot. But due to technicalities like completing tedious documents to prove his true relation to Tali and obtaining an American passport for her, he was significantly delayed. Leon Vance, the director of NCIS used all his power to lean on the authorities, as a personal for Tony but he could only reduce the wait time to so much.

Tony slowly trailed back to his bedroom to lay her down. As he let her go, he watched her drift off slowly and then slid down to sit against the wall, next to her bed. He definitely wasn't getting anymore shut eye for the rest of the night so he stayed up, watching his daughter sleep, wondering how he was going to do this for the rest of his life, without Ziva.

...

Tony awoke suddenly to the sound of Tali's voice. He could not remember at what point he passed out on the floor. But after the glancing at the clock, which read 7:00, it couldn't have been for too long. Tali was running around the apartment, exploring every nook and cranny that caught her eye. She had the same impatience in her personality as did her mother, it seemed.

Tony quickly set up the high chair and sat her in, rummaging for baby food as his coffee was brewing.

"So Tali, what would it be? The usual?" Tony joked as he held up some of the organic baby food that Palmer graciously brought over yesterday. She giggled and said something inaudible, slapping her hands on the baby tray.

 _Oh yes, she was definitely as impatient as her mother_.

Tony mentally slapped any image of Ziva out of his head as he turned to prepare the food. But it was impossible; Ziva was everywhere when Tony looked at his daughter. He decided to put some jazz music on, to wake himself up and pull his mind out of the dark place it was residing in. Jazz could cheer up any situation, in Tony's opinion. He was sure it could even put a smile on the Grim reaper's face.

"Okay my lady. Let's try this again," he said, settling into a chair in front of Tali. "You sit still, I feed you, okay?" He said, knowing full well that this feeding session was going to be just bad as every other one. Just as he spooned the food, his doorbell rang.

"Papa?" Tali looked curiously at the door. Tony immediately knew that his father was waiting for him and went to let Senior in. Tony and Senior spent a few days trying to teach Tali how to say 'grandpa', but she could only wrap her mouth around the letters 'pa', and then proceeded to drive them both crazy with it. Soon after, 'pa' transformed into 'papa' and now it just stuck.

"Where's my gorgeous baby girl?" Senior cooed as he walked up to Tali, giving her a hug and a kiss on her head.

"How did she sleep last night?" Senior asked his son.

"Oh, the queen of hyperactivity was at her usual antics again." He sighed. Immediately realising that he wasn't the only adult in the room, Tony interjected.

"Hey, can you feed her while I take a shower? I need to wake up properly."

"Of course, son. Anything for my little girl," Senior's attention was turned back to Tali as he began making silly faces so she would giggle. Tony came to realise that the sound of Tali's laugh was the best noise he had ever heard in his lifetime. Watching his father commit his attention and energy to Tali 100% of the time was a nice visual. Maybe senior was taking his grandparent status as his final chance to make up for all the mistakes he made with Tony. Like he was determined to prove to Tony, or even himself that he was capable change. Tali was definitely bringing tony and his father closer together, even Senior could tell.

Tony took the time to shower and change, putting on a black shirt and a pair of jeans. He was almost ready to leave his room when he heard his phone go off. It was a message from the Director.

" _Papers came through. Gibbs has them._

 _Green light, you're good to leave.  
-Vance."_

Tony let out a sigh of relief. It meant he could take the next step in this whole process; he had been a sitting duck for too long. He immediately didn't wait another second when he sent back a 'thank you' reply and booked him and Tali a ticket to Tel Aviv in 3 days' time. He may have heavily relied on his father this whole time. But Tony had to take this trip alone with her.

"Dad, I got the green-light from Vance. Tali and I are leaving for Tel Aviv on Wednesday." Tony informed his father as he approached the kitchen counter.

"Well, how long will you be?" Senior replied, slightly taken aback at the thought that he won't be seeing his granddaughter every day for some time.

"Ahh," Tony attempted to reply and then let out a breath of air, shrugging.

"Honestly, I don't know."

"Well what are you going to do there?"

"-Dad, I honestly don't-"

"Junior you can just fly across the world with no plan of action. Why don't I call my friend-"

"DAD. Just, stop. Please." His loud voice, startled Tali as she turned to look at her father. Tony gave her small but reassuring smile and then turned his attention back to senior. "I need to do this. I need answers. I don't know what answers I'll find, I just- I need something." He wasn't mad at his father, they were both doing the best they could with the situation at hand. But he just needed space.

"Fine. And what if you don't find those answers?" Senior questioned him. Tony struggled to get the words out.

"I don't..I mean I will try to..… I don't know Dad. I'll find something else! Solace, closure. I don't know why I need to go back there. I just think it will be good for me and Tali. It feels like the right thing to do." Defeated in their exchange, Senior simply nodded in acceptance and changed the topic to preparing their departure.

...

It was Tuesday night and Tony had strapped his daughter into his car. Two days went by and Tony was already packed and ready to leave DC the next day. He just needed to swing by Gibbs' house to pick up his papers. He honestly knew the route to Gibbs' house better than he did to his own, however this time, it seemed longer than he had remembered. It had been some time since he had seen his former boss. The back of Tony's head was sure thanking him for that. They pulled up to the front of Gibbs' house and Tony took a minute to unstrap Tali from baby seat. Within an instant of being free, Tali ignored all of Tony's protests and ran straight to the front door. She knew exactly where she was and who was waiting for her on the other side.

When Gibbs first met Tali, she kept pointing over and calling him 'Saba'. No one was sure what she was talking about, maybe it had been a sound that she recently learnt. But it soon became clear that 'Saba' was solely reserved for when Gibbs was around. It took some time and a small gut feeling for Tony to stick that word into google translate when he learnt that 'Saba' meant 'grandfather' in Hebrew. Upon divulging that information to Gibbs, he concluded that like himself, Ziva must have shown Tali a photo and spoke about her former boss. He was like a father to her after all.

"Hey Boss," Tony greeted Gibbs as he watched his close-friend and father-figure scoop his daughter up in his arms.

"Saba!" Tali cheered as Gibbs gave her a loving kiss on her cheek.

"DiNozzo," He said opened the door wider to let them in.

"She's been a terror the past few days while I've been packing. You know what? I think this is karma for all the wrong-doings I've committed against women in the past. I thought I skirted through all that without a scratch but now look at me. I got a little one playing with my emotions and causing me grief instead. I mean, I can already feel myself prematurely greying Boss. Is this what fatherhood is like? Should I be preparing for a dad bod now?"

Gibbs smiled at the sound of Tony's mini rant, sitting Tali on his lap. But that only lasted for a second after she spotted her small toys, untouched since she was last over, lying in the corner of living room. She wriggled out of Gibbs' hold and they both watched her clumsily run to the toys.

"Well yeah Tony. Just wait till she starts talking, you'll wish you were born deaf." Gibbs responded. A moment passed before Gibbs turned to Tony, waiting for him to speak. Gunnery Sergeant Leroy Jethro Gibbs was a man of very few words, a functioning mute as Tony would fondly call him. Only his silence and stares were deafening to any human's ears as they always rang a string of commands, questions and thoughts. This time, Gibbs' stare was asking Tony how he was coping.

"I'm terrified," Tony said with a laugh that held no substance or humour. Gibbs gave him a moment to continue. "I don't think I'm ready for this."

"Nobody is ready to be a parent," Gibbs replied.

"Yeah but it's different. I mean, it's _me._ You know me Boss. You know the type of person I am. And I don't think that a guy like me should be trusted with such a small person like her." Tony was scared of raising her wrong, he didn't have a good blueprint to rely on.

"No," Gibbs shook his head. "I think you're exactly the right person you're meant to be, to be raising her. You've come a long way DiNozzo. Don't sell yourself short." It was often rare when Gibbs had a heart-to-heart with Tony. After 13 years of being co-workers, Tony still wasn't overly accustomed to moments like this. But he knew everything his former boss was saying was the truth. He learnt how to trust his own gut almost as much as he does with Gibbs'. They looked back at Tali, who was too busy examining one of her toys to notice that they were watching her.

"She's got busy hands," Gibbs said.

"Huh, well maybe you can teach her how to build a boat one day. Someone needs to know the secret of how you get that damn thing out of your garage anyway." Tony joked.

They spoke a little bit more about Tony's travel plans, or lack there-of and Gibbs handed him all the documentation he needed.

"You take care of yourself and that little girl." He said, as he gave Tony a hug, knowing full well that he wouldn't being seeing DiNozzo for a while.

"Will do Boss. Say hi to the team for me." Tony watched as Gibbs bent down and picked Tali up and ruffled her curly hair, placing a soft kiss on her forehead. Tony left Gibbs' house with a new-found sense of confidence. It was true that Gibbs' never said much. But, when he did, those words would always ring true for Tony. He was ready for this; he was ready to be a father.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! Firstly I need to thank RenardDePapier, DS2010, Mike Kelley, misspatchesmom, Denise3130, Debbie and a mysterious guest for your kind reviews. Even if you just followed the story or favourited it, your support meant EVERYTHING to me!**

 **This is my second chapter. It is a little shorter than the first but I've had a busy few days! I also have a very busy two weeks ahead of me so I will try my best to get out some content for you ASAP. But, please be patient cause they won't be posted frequently. I will aim to have a chapter out every** **FRIDAY** **so it will give me time to stretch them out and keep them authentic. I would hate to just rush and post something that didn't feel real or genuine.**

 **So enjoy! Lemme know what you think :) xx**

Ever heard of the saying "Famous last words"?

Well that was exactly the ironic phrase that kept ringing in Tony's ears as he exited the international airport in Tel Aviv. Tali had spent the full 14-hour journey doing absolutely everything BUT sleeping and sitting peacefully. She wandered aimlessly through the cabin, she cried, she squirmed in her seat. Tony followed her every second, silent praying for this whole ordeal to end. He needed a moment to rest and no amount of stern talking was going to guarantee him that second until one of the flight hostesses walked over to him and offered to take Tali for a little while. She was pretty, he could see that. And her eyes were definitely showing _exactly_ what she wanted him to see as well. Maybe it was her way of initiating a form of contact between them. At NCIS, Tony was taught to read people. Gage their posture, find their tells, determine who is a friend from foe. The thought of parting with Tali to a stranger made Tony hesitate for a moment so he compromised. He moved closer to an empty seat right near the utilities and watched the stewardess entertain Tali for a while. Every few minutes, Tali would look over, as if to check that her father was still around. It never occurred to him that she could also be paranoid, worried that her dad might just vanish one day so suddenly. Like her mum, her home and her whole other family did that _one_ night. Tony was comforted in knowing that she needed him just as much as he needed her. Tali was his new partner in crime, his new love, his new life.

Tony was hailed down by a member of Orli's personal security team when he stepped out of the airport, with a sleeping Tali in his arms. It was noisy day in the busy city of Tel Aviv, but no amount of chaos could wake a jetlagged child.

"Oh now, you're dead asleep huh. That's convenient." Tony muttered as he began to unload his luggage into the taxi with his free hand. The air was muggy; humidity was blowing through with the wind. Tony rubbed his eyes to wake himself up. He would do anything for a coffee right now. Hell, he would even go for a cafpow too.

"Take this," The agent said, handing Tony a mobile phone. "This is from the Director. It is a secure phone number. You will need it." Tony hesitantly took the phone and thought twice to question him. If Orli said he needed it, then there must be a reason. As their car began to move, Tony quietly lay Tali across his lap and looked through the phone. There were only three contacts listed in the index:

1. _1._ _Orli_

 _2._ _2._ _C1_

 _3._ _3._ _C2_

Tony raised an eyebrow at his findings and made a mental note to question the Director of Mossad about it later.

"So, how is your Hebrew?" The agent asked from the driver's seat.

"Terrible," Tony responded. He had been meaning to polish up on the foreign language. It would no doubt be useful during his time here.

"Well if you are staying here for long, you will need to improve quickly. Not many people here can speak good English," He responded.

"Yeah I got that. Thanks." Tony sarcastically replied. _Who the hell was this guy?_

Tony looked down at his daughter and muttered to himself. "I got a reason to learn now, I guess."

They settled into a comfortable silence for the rest of the 30-minute journey. Tony spent that time resting his eyes whilst stroking Tali's hair absentmindedly. Before long, they reached the safe-house and the agent exited the car to unload the luggage. Tony got out with Tali in one hand and immediately reached to touch the back of his jeans with his other. It was habit he fell into, reaching behind as he always expected to clasp onto his gun. Only he was a civilian now, not a cop. He wasn't expected to secure the area or always be on the lookout for danger. That didn't stop him though. It's not like he could change his 20-something year old habit overnight.

The safe house was small and inconspicuous. The streets were not busy, the area was seemingly quiet. It seemed that Orli picked the perfect area for hiding. Tony mentally noted all the exits and entrances as he walked to the front door. He was never this paranoid, ever. But then again, he always had gun before. The agent followed with their bags and unlocked the door. As Tony stepped in, with a sleeping Tali in his arms, he was greeted by, two agents and his new friend- the director of Mossad.

"Orli," Tony greeted her as she walked up closer to him. She was donned in a grey pantsuit and her hair was tightly pulled back.

Upon noticing the sleeping baby in his arms, Orli pointed to the bedroom door "Come."

Tony immediately placed Tali on the bed gently and turned to Orli when she engulfed in him an embrace. Over the past few weeks, Orli would often phone Tony for updates on his daughter. It was true when said that over time, she grew extremely close to Ziva and Tali.

"Are you well Tony?" She asked him.

"Fine," He wasn't find at all. He was sleep deprived and hungry. But he just wasn't in the mood to talk. He threw with a small smile to Orli to soften the silence that had settled upon them. Orli looked down at Tali.

"She has grown so much since I saw her. Ziva would be so proud." At the mention of her name, Tony walked away from Orli and headed towards the window.

"Listen," She said, sensing his distant emotions. "I've set this place up for you indefinitely. This is one of my personal safe-houses. I have taken refuge in these walls many times so I can promise you, this place is secure and safe. Stay as long as you want, do whatever you need to do. If you need, I will have a car brought for you but I only ask one favour. Allow me to post two agents here for precaution."

Tony turned to her and leant against the windowsill, irritated. "Why? Why are you going to all this trouble to keep us hidden? When I told you over the phone that I was coming, I agreed to the safe house but I said nothing about having a personal entourage."

"This is not about you DiNozzo. This is about her." She pointed towards Tali.

"Well it kinda makes the whole 'off the grid' thing a little difficult when I got two agents following my tail. I'll be fine with my kid, I don't need a couple of baby-sitters to waste my time." He was exhausted and every word that he spoke was harsher than he intended.

"These are some of my finest agents Tony. They are very capable of keeping you and Tali safe." She warned him. "Eli made many enemies throughout his time at Mossad. And his actions led to consequences that cost both his life and his daughter's too. I do not want to take any chances. Word got out that there was a survivor from the blast and if anyone discovers that it was Ziva's daughter and Eli's grandchild, I would fear the worst."

"Okay fine. Then let's settle this like adults." He petitioned. "Give me a gun and I'll keep one of your agents," Orli did not respond.

"Or," He dragged out the word, "You can forget the gun and I'll lose the agents the first chance I get. You may think having Tali will slow me down, but that kid is like her mother on steroids on a normal day. I lose her at least twice a day in my own apartment. Imagine how fast we could move if she was hyped up on sugar." He folded his arms and waited for Orli's response. Sure, Tony was a clueless guy when it came to being a father but he wasn't an idiot. Sugar was the kryptonite for all parents and he would rather sign his death warrant than feed his kid any artificials at this age. Orli pursed her lips, considering his compromise. Maybe she was over-reacting, maybe there was no impending danger for these two. But she was the director of Mossad, it was her job to over-react. Just because she was not aware of any danger did not mean that there wasn't a threat out there. She had worked tirelessly, after the explosion to bring justice for Ziva. She promised herself, to honour Ziva by creating a space, a world where Tali can live peacefully and safely. She was determined that Tali would never know the life that Ziva was forced into.

Orli turned to walk out the door and paused.

"Keep that phone on you at all times. I will call later," she nodded to extra phone that Tony threw on the bed earlier, the one she had given him. He opened his mouth to question Orli but immediately silenced himself when he saw her pull out a 9mm glock from her bag and place it on a table. She gave him a look, with a raised eyebrow and walked away, taking one of her agents along. Tony let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. It's not every day you take on the director of Mossad and not be assassinated. But then again, she was not _just_ the director to him anymore.

He walked up to the table and picked up the gun. It had been a while since he held a glock in his hand and had forgotten how heavy they were. He turned it over in his hand and noticed the missing serial number. _This must have been Orli's personal one._ He automatically reached for his bag and hid the gun safely and then glanced over at Tali.

Tony needed to wake her so she could get into a routine and be able to sleep tonight. He sighed at the thought; he already knew what kind of nightmare was awaiting him. But he needed to take 40 to rest and recover before he could take on an exhausted Tali. So Tony showered and then laid down next to his daughter, watching her even breathing before his eyes closed.

...

Tony woke abruptly when he heard his phone vibrate silently in his back pocket. He quickly checked Tali to see if she was stirred but she was still blissfully knocked out. He slowly removed himself from the bed and walked out of the bedroom, answering his phone.

"Hey Dad,"

"Son, how is everything going over there?" Senior asked, his voice sounding distant over the phone.

"Oh peachy. It's humid, its hot, its-"

"-Healing?" Senior said, thrusting Tony back to their last fiery conversation.

"Tali's fine." Tony said, changing the subject. "She's sleeping right now, jetlag hit her like a tonne of bricks"

"Well make sure she wakes soon, you don't want a hyperactive toddler on your hands at 3am in the morning" Senior warned. Tony grunted in agreement. "So..are you okay?" Senior asked his son. He could imagine that all this was silently taking a toll on Tony.

"I'm okay," He simply replied. It was comforting for Tony to hear from this paternal side of Senior once in a while. There was a silence that settled between them. "Look I gotta go, wake up that rascal" Tony said quickly.

"Sure, take care of our little girl Son." Senior said, signing off.

"Of course. Bye dad." Tony ended the call and sat down on the couch. He glanced outside to the agent who was standing guard and thought back to how many times he had to be that person. His attention soon moved from the window to the contents of the living room. It looked like a proper house, not like any of the safe-houses Tony had been in before. Over to the corner, there were lines scratched into the wall and dates written on the side of them. It was as if someone was measuring a child's height.

Next to the wall was a large cabinet, with knick-nacks and trinkets littered around. Tony got up to investigate. He couldn't help himself; He was a nosey guy, everybody knew that! He opened the first drawer of the cabinet and found papers, with information written in Hebrew. Disregarding all that, he moved onto the second drawer and found some CD's, a set of keys, a Hebrew manual and a piece of paper with a list of numbers written on them. There was nothing that sparked his interested so Tony moved onto the final and third drawer and found something very interesting. Lying face down, amongst the empty space, were a set of pictures in picture frames. Tony creased his eyes in confusion and curiosity sure got the better of him when he reached down and picked them up, turning them all over.

He was definitely not expecting to see what he saw.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Firstly I want to thank everybody who took their precious time to review/follow and favourite the story so far. You are all so amazing! Your support really makes me want to do my best with this story.**

 **As promised, here is no.3! Its a bit of a filler, I apologise- but it's still some good content! I'm trying to give you all a little insight into Tony and what he's going through emotionally.** **I'm also trying to incorporate a few Hebrew words here and there and I'm using a translation website to help me with this. But if you find anything in the story that doesn't seem accurate or factual (including anything else relevant to the plot line), please let me know! I'm only human, I make mistakes all the time! :)**

 **Okay thats it for me, enjoy and let me know what you think!**

Tony stared down at the first picture stacked on top of the others. It was a young Orli; she was in her mid-twenties. Orli was standing with some people, laughing. Tony had never seen the director of Mossad exhibit any tone that resembled a laugh before; it seemed like a foreign concept to her. Her hair was long and curly, draped over her shoulders. Her hand was clasped around a glass of wine and she was looking up at a man, with a twinkle in her eye. Orli seemed happy in this picture, carefree almost. Tony followed her gaze until his eyes rested on the man whose arm was clasped tightly around her waist. He was looking at the other people, his mouth open as if he was mid-sentence. Everyone seemed to be unapologetically focused on this guy in the picture, like he was the centre of gravity. The man was tall and carried a head full of back curls too. This man was almost a stranger to Tony. In fact, he would have not recognised him if it wasn't for his eyes.

Tony believed that in life, there were certain memories that a man would carry with him forever. Perhaps the feeling of a former lover's embrace. Or maybe the memory of a first kiss. In Tony's world, he still remembered exactly how his mother's hair would glisten in the sunlight. He still remembered exactly what song was playing in the bar the moment he realised that Wendy was not the woman for him to marry. He could easily recall the fine lines laced on Ziva's fingertips the last time he held her hand. And right now, in this moment, he was staring at set of eyes that he could never forget in a lifetime.

Eli David was a calculated man. Tony already knew that, but from staring at this picture, it was clear to him that Eli had been like this all his life. Something about his smiling face that still held a cold look rubbed Tony the wrong way. Tony knew at some point he would have to tell Tali about her grandfather. But he was going to have to rely on Orli for stories about the man that did not involve deception, betrayal and hostility.

He placed the photo of the young Orli and Eli behind the others and examined the second one. It was a picture he had seen a thousand times. She used to pin it up behind her desk back in the squadroom. Tony looked down as a young Ziva, Tali and Ari were staring back at him. They were standing together, with ruffled hair and dusty clothes as if they had been playing in the streets. He shuffled the pictures once more, moving the second to the back and glanced at the final picture frame. The picture hit him hard in the gut. Staring at the photo intensely, he absentmindedly moved to the couch and sat down.

He was in need of some stability.

It was a picture of his daughter. She was a baby, much younger than she was now and she was cradled in Ziva's arms. Ziva and Tali were looking at each other and Tony could instantly see how much they looked alike. Ziva was smiling at her daughter who was mid-laugh. He instantly felt a spark of jealousy of whoever was standing behind the camera because this felt like an intimate moment, something _he_ should have been a part of. He stared at Ziva. She looked happy, peaceful even. Tali must have given her a new purpose, a real reason to stay away from the badge.

Tony was hit with a wave of emotions. He felt odd for starters. Up until that moment, Tony could only wonder and imagine what Ziva was like with their daughter. He would make up imaginary scenarios, wondered how Ziva handled Tali when she cried or when she refused to eat. He would make these little movies in his head as an obscure way to console himself. But seeing them together made it all so real for him. That this really was _their_ daughter.  
He felt comforted knowing that after losing every member of her family, Tali was Ziva's answer to a new start. But he also felt bitter. He was looking down at the two women in his life that loved the most and was hit with the fact that he could only spend the rest of his life with one of them. He sighed and rubbed the top of his brow. He stood up and walked towards the cupboard again, intending to return the pictures when he spied a small table close-by that was covered in a thin layer of dust. Amongst the dust were three distinct gaps, as if something was recently removed from the table after a long time. Tony almost immediately walked over, knowing exactly where these photos _should_ be and placed them on the table, directly covered the gaps perfectly.

"Safe house my ass," Tony muttered to himself as he thought about what Orli had previously said to him. Tony was convinced that this place was more than just a safe-house to the director. Suddenly, Tony heard small footsteps coming his way. Tali was walking over, yawning and Tony picked her up immediately, almost by habit.

"Hey little lady, you sleep okay?" He could tell she was grumpy by the way she softly groaned and dropped her head against his neck.

"Akal?"

Tony was amused every time heard that Hebrew word. For a kid who is such a fussy eater, she loved to say the word "Eat."

"Tali, you know you're going to have to learn English at some point, right?" He sat her down on the kitchen counter top and looked into the fridge, which was already stocked. Tony had begun to cook more since leaving NCIS. He had a reason too, now that Tali had moved on from baby food to more solids. In fact, he actually surprised himself with how much he _enjoyed_ it. Sure, he wasn't the _greatest_ cook. It was impossible to be a Gordon Ramsey when you're dedicating 9+ hours to the job every day. The only culinary-related skills Tony truly ever mastered was the ability to brew a strong-ass coffee. But damn, he could make a mean steak. And that's exactly what he whipped up once he spied the meat readily available.

"Grandpa called," He began, whilst sautéing the steak in the pan with a smile on his face. It was always amusing to call senior that. "He asked about you," He glanced at Tali who was preoccupied with eating a chopped banana. "I told him you were fine, just being a regular Dennis. You know, menacing around." He said conversationally, as if his daughter was even listening. "I think he really misses us. I could hear it in his voice. You know it's been a while since I had spent a more than a week with senior. I think it was college.." He drifted off, gathering his thoughts. "Anyway, truth is I don't really know when we're gonna go back home." He removed the steak from the pan and let it rest. He turned and leant against the counter to see Tali with a big smile on her face. Tony glanced down at her plate and saw pieces of banana squashed and smeared across her plate. Tali's hands were outstretched in front of him, covered in banana too. Tony rolled his eyes and sighed, "Honestly.."

He picked up his daughter and brought her to the sink. "I really need to teach you to not play with your food." He opened the tap and put her hands under the sink, drenching them in water before reaching for the soap and lathering them too. Once they were done, he sat her down in a chair and cut her some small pieces of steak to eat. As he began to fork the food, Tali reached up and clasped her small hand over Tony's grip. She began to direct the fork into her mouth.

"I think this is the first time you haven't reigned hell on me. You must be _really_ hungry" Tony said amused. He was already claiming this as a win for a successful feeding and they were only one bite in. He stuck his fork into a steak piece again and she did the same thing. He raised his eyebrow as she guided his hand into her mouth once more.

"Huh. Rule #15" He said out loud. "Saba, he has a list of rules that he taught me and your mother when we worked together. Rule #15 is always work as a team." Her eyes were watching Tony intently even though he was certain that Tali had no idea what the hell he was even talking about. "When you're older, I'll teach them to you. Well, I guess the relevant ones- I doubt the 40s are ever going to useful to you in your lifetime." He joked. "I'm still building my own list and I got a few so far but- ". He instantly stopped as he noticed Tali reaching for the food on their plate with her freshly cleaned hands. "Woah, easy there little lady." He stopped her hand. "You know what, new rule #1- Don't play with your food". It was pretty redundant to be mad at his daughter. Tony was already past the point of 'denial' and was comfortably sitting in the pool of 'acceptance' when it came to being wrapped around her little finger.

Tony finished his meal quickly and brewed some coffee whilst he bathed his daughter and got her ready. It was the afternoon by now and he thought about going somewhere for a little while, maybe get some fresh air. He had never actually gotten the chance to _visit_ Tel Aviv before. Tony remembered Ziva incessantly going on and on about some of her favourite places in Tel Aviv, particularly the old city of Jaffa. Considering he had no itinerary, nor did he actually _know_ anyone in Israel besides Orli, Tony figured that he would start there.

After a great deal of negotiating, Tony finally exited the car with his daughter in one hand, her plush dog in the other and her 'baby backpack' over his shoulder, leaving his Mossad babysitter behind. He understood the agent's incessant need to be present at all times. He technically wouldn't be doing his job as 'protective detail' if he wasn't overreacting. But Orli's paranoia was driving Tony crazy. He did promise that he would 'keep one her agents' but Tony never said he would keep the guy with him at _all times_. It's all about the fine details after all. Jaffa was a bustling place. There were markets lining the streets, echos of sounds from people shouting, music playing and children laughing. Tony only knew the secretive, deceptive Tel Aviv from his previous visits. But he was pleasantly surprised to find that the city had a whole other fun, seductive side too. Tali's senses were off the charts. Her attention was stolen at any sudden movement and loud voice that invaded her space. Tony began walking through the streets with Tali in his arms. People were shouting things in broken English at him; he probably stood out as an American like a fish out of water. This made him alert, out of habit. With his new and comforting 9mm friend stashed in the back of his jeans, Tony let his attention wander slightly with his daughter's. Tali would make sounds every time something exciting grabbed her attention.

"I know" Tony would respond to her, each time.

After 40 minutes of walking around, Tony was in desperate need of some more coffee. Jetlag was beginning to sink in now and he suddenly envied his daughter's infinite bounds of energy that she constantly exerted. They stopped at a café and sat at a table outside so Tony could people watch. It was one of his favourite past-times, he loved being nosey after all.

Tali began to wriggle around in her seat.

"Kalev, kalev, kalev" Tali kept repeating, reaching out to Tony and he instinctively pulled out her plush toy from her babypack.

"Okay, now will you sit still please?" Tony said with a fake smile. "I should get you to run laps around house so you can waste your energy and just pass out" He muttered to himself as he brushed something off her shoulder. It was peaceful sitting there with his daughter as she played with her toy and he watched the passer's by. He could almost pretend that his life wasn't a mess for a moment.

10 mins of tranquillity passed before Tony felt his back pocket vibrate. He reached down and retrieved his phone, expecting to see Orli's caller ID but momentarily froze when he saw the word 'C1' pop up on the phone. He raised his eyebrow in curiosity and pressed a button, raising the phone to his ear.

"Yeah?" He said slowly.

"DiNozzo?" He paused for a second and glanced down at his daughter, as if she cared about who was speaking to him on the phone.

"Who is this?" Tony ignored the caller's question and pressed his own.

"Ahh, I was wondering when you were coming to Israel. I've been waiting for you."

 **Plot twist again! I was considering giving you some clues about who the caller might be but I thought it would be more fun to read your comments and see what you come up with!**

 **Until next week! xx**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello! I apologise for the lateness of this chapter. I had some writing issues and decided to re-write the whole chapter again last minute!**

 **Thank you once again for all the reviews, follows, favourites and silent reads! You all make my day :)  
Someone actually private messaged me and asked me why I'm calling this story 'Turning Tables'. I thought it would be an interesting note and I decided to share it here for everyone to read.**

 **The concept of 'Turning tables' is to take an incident/occurance/odds and flip them so that they're in your favour. I relate that to this story because I want this to be about Tony taking his odds (that are stacked so far up against him) and turn them into his favour! Hope that makes sense.**

 **So here it is :)  
Please review, let me know what you think. I have included a great juxtaposition of Tony's character before and after Ziva's death here. Hope you like it! **

**xx**

"Alright let's get your shoes on little lady," Tony bent down to level with his daughter as she sat on the bed, swinging her legs around. She was humming an incoherent tune to herself and examined the room. It was always a mystery to Tony as to how she could be so carefree and jovial, despite everything she had already been through. Maybe she was too young to understand that her mother wasn't actually _gone_ ; she was actually dead.

Tony wondered if, at some point she would begin to feel that gaping hole for her mother in her life, like he did in his own right now. But he did not settle on that thought for too long because his guard Reuben, entered into the bedroom.

"The car is ready Anthony," Tony slightly nodded in acknowledgement and then walked into the bathroom away from his daughter. He slid his gun into his jeans and grabbed Kalev off the counter and walked back into the room. He picked up their bags, packed with a few changes of clothes.

"Alright Tali, we're going on a little trip." He said, handing over the toy. They had been out and about a few times after their first visit out to Jaffa. Mostly closer to home, nothing too strenuous. After Tony's unexpected call, his mind was completely preoccupied. Despite his countless attempts for Tali and Ziva, his thoughts were nowhere near centred around 'getting cultured' at this time. The phone call lasted a total of 20 seconds. In that time, Tony had barely gotten a word or two in before he was given an order to write down an address. He glanced at the napkin that laid on the bed-side table, with his rushed handwriting sprawled across it. It took Tony a minute to register who he was speaking to on the phone but it was a minute too late when the call had suddenly ended.

Tony led his daughter to the car and strapped her into the baby seat. He mused over the director's recent guarded behaviour and the mysterious phone call from C1, silently questioning if the two strange occurrences were connected.

"Rule 39 Tali- There is no such thing as a coincidence," Tony pointed out as if his daughter had a direct feed into his inner thoughts.

The address that Tony wrote down led to a townhouse which was one hour out of Tel Aviv. Tony had never ventured this far from the city- so really, one could say that he didn't _totally_ abandon his plan to 'see the sights'. Tony did not bother telling Orli about his unplanned visit out of town. He figured, since she _actually gave him the phone_ that Orli _expected_ someone to be in contact with him. Plus, he was taking along the babysitter for the ride. If this Israeli agent was as observant and sneaky as Tony was on the job, Orli would have known about Tony's plans the moment he practically formulated them in his mind.

The drive was seemingly silent, with Tali's incoherent sounds filling whatever gaps laid between the two men. The agent knew better than to converse with Tony over small talk. He had already been watching over the pair for a half a week now and he could tell that the former NCIS agent was not around to make unnecessary niceties; there were much more important thoughts riding through his conscience. Even Tony was aware of his own change in demeanour. It was very unlike him after all, to be silent…like ever. He found silences uncomfortable and awkward, regardless of who he was around.

 **(** ** _Flashback)_**

 _"Just shut up Tony!" Ziva exclaimed in a frustrated tone. They had been sitting together in a car on a stake-out for hours now and she was two seconds away from driving her knife through his brain._

 _"Excuse me?" Tony feigned offence. "What happened to your new year's resolution of being nicer to the people around you, Ziva?"_

 _"That only applied to people who didn't deliberately drive me down the hall," She snapped back._

 _"Up the wall," Tony interjected. "You know Miss America, for someone who claims she knows the bill of rights back to front, I find it extremely interesting how you still can't commit simple American idioms to your brain."_

 _"Yeah because I keep killing my brain cells by listening to your mindless, stupid chatter." She retorted and rolled her eyes. "Why don't we just sit in silence okay?"_

 _"But then how will keep myself preoccupied?" Tony asked, still feigning offence._

 _"I don't know," Ziva exasperated, "Count to 100."_

 _"Okay," Tony concluded. Two seconds of silence passed. "1, 2, 3, 4, 5-"_

 _"TONY" Ziva pinched his arm, hard. He made a noise in surprise and pain._

 _"Hey! You didn't specifically say count in my head!"_

 _"Why are you so incapable of listening to me?!"_

 _"Because I don't like silences okay?" Tony replied, his words rushing out in defeat. Ziva eyed him closely, expecting him to continue. "They make me uncomfortable."_

 _"I do not care." Ziva enunciated and turned to face the building in front of them._

 _"We could just… you know talk….about things." Tony offered sheepishly._

 _"If I have to hear you go on about how this case reminds you about another stupid movie, I'm going to have to kill you…or worse, myself." Ziva said blatantly._

 _"No I mean…you know..about life." Tony stared dead straight as Ziva turned to eye him again._

 _"You want to talk about …..life?" She asked slowly._

 _"Well…no…" Tony trailed off. He didn't really know where he was going with this. He just wanted to..talk to her. "Unless, well.. do you want to talk about life?" He asked her, mentally slapping himself._

 _"You want ..me.. to talk to about…life?" Ziva asked him again. It had been just over a year since the team had rescued her from Somalia. She knew this conversation was bound to happen, despite furiously avoiding it._

 _"No, I mean I don't want you to talk about….if you don't want to...…but if you want to talk about life..?" He asked as a question more than a reassurance. Honestly, he REALLY had no idea where he was going with this. It was hole he accidentally began digging and he was already half way to china._

 _"Tony, I am fine. There is nothing to talk about. Thank you for caring, but I am fine" Tony knew every she spoke was a lie but he didn't push it. She would talk when she was ready, if not to him then to someone else close. Another deafening silence settled between the two partners._

 _"Okay fine but-" The moment Tony opened his mouth Ziva let out a frustrated growl. She knew she should have chosen McGee's desk work over this._

 _"Just one more question and I'll shut up, scout's honour." She looked at him expectantly. He opened his mouth, with a look of genuine concern on his face._

 _"Does this suit make me look fat?"_

 **(Present)**

"Mr. DiNozzo, we have arrived." Reuben said, waking Tony from his thoughts. He did not even realise that he had zoned out for the last 20 minutes of the car ride and instantly checked his side mirror to see if Tali was still there. Upon seeing her desperately try to wriggle herself out of her seatbelt, he breathed a small sigh of relief and stepped out of the car. The town house was not overly massive. In fact, it blended in very well in the suburban streets that surrounded. He scoped out the area for a quick minute before adhering to Tali's noises of frustration and released her from the babyseat.

"Water" She said in her broken English, with a look of desperation on her face. She was a brilliant actress when playing the dramatic card. Tony could not even be annoyed by that because he knew that stemmed from his own personality. Honestly, if any other parent had overheard her plea, Tony was sure they would think she was being starved.

"Can you wait two seconds Tali? I promise you're going to die from dehydration between here to that door." He pointed over to the townhouse, just in time to see it open.

"I'm not sure DiNozzo. If she is anything like her stubborn mother, you know that won't stop her from trying" A voice joked. The sun was already setting but Tony could easily see Shmeil as he walked over quickly to the car with a gleaming smile.

"Shmeil the man of steel," Tony smiled and hugged his friend. It was refreshing to see a familiar face after some time. It reminded him of home.

"How are you Tony?" He smiled back and grabbed the baby bag from the car. Tali had a look of curiosity on her face as she eyed the small, Jewish man in front of her.

"I've been better," He said truthfully. Tony picked Tali up who instantly pushed her weight down. Tony knew she would do this every time she wanted to walk herself, so he sighed and abided her silent command, placing her on the floor. They both watched her skip off to examine a bed of flowers close to her house. Clearly, she hadn't been _that_ desperate for a drink.

"She's just like her mother," Shmeil said as they both began to walk towards the house.

"Oh yeah," Tony replied in agreeance "A real curious cat."

"Oh no Tony, from what Ziva used to tell me about you, I think she gets _that_ from your side." Shmeil smiled at his friend. Tony huffed in defiance and called his daughter over to the house. Shmeil walked over to the agent and had a quick a conversation in Hebrew with the guy.

A minute passed and he walked back to Tony.

"Okay, everything is taken care of."

"I'm guessing Orli knows I'm here." Tony said with a-matter-of-fact voice.

"Well of course, nothing gets passed that woman." He replied.

"How do you know each other?" Tony asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"There will be time for talking DiNozzo, do not fret. For now, let's eat!"

Tony was definitely not going to refute that.

…...

"So much has happened since we last met Tony," Shmeil said. Tali was already fed and put down for her afternoon nap. Tony simply nodded without voicing his agreement. It was no secret that everyone's world had turned upside since recent events.

The two men were now sitting on the porch, gazing out to the garden. Tony and Shmeil spent dinner talking about generally basic things: Tony's time in Tel Aviv thus far, Shmeil's new modern history class at the local university and Tali. Shmeil apologised profusely for the abrupt phone call. He was in-between classes and needed to go soon. His explanation put any suspicions in Tony's head to rest.

"How do you know Orli?" Tony asked, changing the subject. That question was still playing on his mind because he struggled to make the connection between the two individuals.

"Orli is an old acquaintance. I have known her since she was a young and eager agent. I've had some…..affiliations…with Mossad." He said sheepishly. Tony was instantly thrown back to the moment when Ziva was once given a picture of her friend from the past when he covertly worked for the Israeli government. Tony was no stranger to keeping assignments confidential from the outside world, so he didn't press on.

"Huh," he replied.

"She's absolutely precious," Shmeil said with a voice filled with adoration. He was thrusted back to their dinner, where Tali kept them entertained with her usual hyperactive antics.

"That she is," Tony replied. "Did you see her, Tali, when she was born?"

"No, I was in America."

"But you knew?" He asked. Shmeil could see where this was going. It would seem terrible if he had known before the father of Ziva's child even had a clue. So that's why he lied.

"No, I did not Tony. She did not tell anybody." Shmeil couldn't explain why Ziva had never told Tony. He had no clue. But that was her decision, even if she was aware of how wrong it was. He nodded in acceptance and faced the garden again. Shmeil filled in the gaps of silence, talking about his university classes. Tony listened with some interest whilst his mind kept wandering. These days, his head was always drifting from the present. Shmeil was planning on staying in Israel for some time. Since Ziva's death, Shmeil had been actively involved in a lot of the Davids' affairs.

"That reminds me," He said. He stood up and walked inside, prompting Tony to follow. They walked over to a dining table that was crowded with files and papers. Shmeil pulled out a file and handed it to Tony. Tony took the file and began to flip between the pages.

"Ziva," Shmeil started. "She never left a will. And it becomes a difficult process in relation to claiming all her assets. As you are the father of Tali but you two were not married, we need to undergo a legal process in order for you to have any right to claim her possessions. I spoke to the lawyers already and-"

"Her possessions all perished in the fire," Tony pointed out, unsure of what Shmeil said.

"Of course. But I mean her financial assets and anything else that was attached to the David name." Tony blinked in surprise. Shmeil was right; Tali was the sole survivor of the David name and the heir to whatever remained from her family.

"Okay," Tony said distractedly. He was too mentally exhausted to have this conversation right now and Shmeil could tell.

"How about we talk through this tomorrow Tony. I'm sure commute was tiring."

"No, I'm fine." Tony quickly reassured his friend. He did not want Shmeil to think he was suffering at this moment. "Got any alcohol?" Tony asked with a laugh that was definitely not humorous. He was very serious at this moment. Shmeil simply smiled and pulled through, walking away to retrieve a bottle of 'Southern Comfort'. It wasn't his favourite whiskey, but then again Tony would never complain in desperate times. They shared a glass and Shmeil told a story to fill the silence again. But without fail, another pregnant paused settled between them.

"She loved you, I hope you know that" Shmeil said. Tony snapped his head back to Shmeil and huffed in defiance once more. He had heard that countless times before. From Abby, from McGee, from his father. But none of that would ever, truly feel true unless it came from Ziva herself. And that was impossible.

"How do you even know?" Tony asked sceptically.

"She didn't need to ever say anything to tell me Tony. I could see it every time she looked at you." Tony rolled his eyes, unconvinced. "But she told me once." He stood up and walked to peer out of the window, avoiding Shmeil's gaze.

"Seems like she told everyone except yours truly" He said, with a serious tone to overshadow his sarcastic comment.

"You know her Tony," Shmeil started.

"No, I didn't. At least I thought I did but apparently not. The Ziva I knew cared about me. She was considerate; she thought twice before saying things, doing things because she _cared_. She was my best friend. And when she left, I understood. Really, I honestly did. But how can you look me in the eye and tell me that she cared about me yet still kept my child way from _me?"_ He asked, raising his voice slightly with every word that escaped his mouth. He instantly lowered his tone when Tali entered his thoughts.

"But you know of her independence Tony. I am not going to pretend like I understand why did she the things she did. But she I am sure that she had a reason. You know she was capable of living her life free of any man. You know the life she lived. She was under control from her father, her past boyfriends, her country. She needed liberty. Maybe she needed to do this on her own."

"But that was not her decision to make," Tony interjected.

"I know, believe me DiNozzo, I know. But you know the person she was. You know-"

Tony interrupted Shmeil once more, practically ignoring his entire speech and corrected him once more.

"-Knew. I knew her. She's dead now." And he walked away, leaving an exasperated Shmeil behind.

...….

The following morning had come 'round and Tony was already in the kitchen with his daughter when Shmeil walked in. Shmeil instantly walked over to the little girl and planted a big kiss on her forehead. All tension between the two men had dissolved the moment they both laid their eyes on Tali. Shmeil may have met her a few times, but he already loved her dearly. He just wished things were different for Tony. Shmeil wished that Tony had the opportunity, the chance to be with Ziva.

Tony felt guilty for his outburst last night. He spent the rest of the evening practically awake, going over the final time he ever saw Ziva. It was on the tarmac, just before he boarded the plane. He constantly went over that scene as an investigator, searching for something in her demeanour, her looks, her words, that hinted her love for him. Sure, he found things, he felt things, but it just wasn't enough. Granted, he could go over these moments till he drove himself insane but it would never change the fact that he never told her himself. He never uttered the words 'I love you.' And he would have to live with that for the rest of his life.

"Look Shmeil, I'm sorry about-" Shmeil simply raised his hand to silence Tony and gave him a warm smile.

"It is already forgotten."

They spent the morning talking and Tony made breakfast for the three of them. Shmeil began teaching Tony some basic Hebrew and forcing English words onto Tali. From the outside, it seemed like functioning family; a daughter, a father and a grandfather. From the inside, it was anything but.

"Tony, I want to give you something." Shmeil said.

"Sure, but if it's another lecture on how I'm failing to see the-"

"No, wait a moment." He walked away and returned with a shoe-box in his hand

"Oh!" Tali said, as she looked at the possession in Shmeil's hands.

"Yes my darling, this was your mother's" This comment made Tony glance up and examine what Shmeil had brought. It was a large, brown shoe-box. Nothing extravagant, nothing that looked seemingly important. But oh boy Tony was definitely wrong. Inside were letters, notes, pictures and trinkets that belonged to Ziva. Tony was left seemingly speechless as he did not know what to make of the situation.

"I collected this, along with the rest of her possessions that did not burn in the fire. I suggest you look through this when you have a moment to yourself. I know she would have wanted you to have it."

Tony could not speak, he just didn't know what to say. So he settled on an small smile and a nod in acknowledge and set it aside.

"There is one more thing." Shmeil said, bringing Tony back to reality.

"There is someone who I would like you to meet. I was thinking that we could visit them at some point."

"Who?" Tony asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Someone who has been wanting to meet you and Tali for some time. And as for when….well…now."

 **Another cliff-hanger! Hopefully it's not as bad as the one before. Anyway, let me know what you think please. I rely on your opinions to know if I'm writing this story well enough.**

 **On an unrelated note, I know a lot of people are hoping that this will be a 'Ziva is alive story' AND I appreciate all those comments. All I want to say is the whole intent of an author is to write a story that is engaging and addictive. I want to keep the suspense and that is why I haven't confirmed OR denied anything in my writing or through my comments. You will soon find out in what direction this story is heading.**

 **Truth is I have SO MANY alternate endings AND plot- lines planned for this story. Some days, I prefer one more than the others! So All I am saying is don't lose hope! As soon as I write it, I will post it :)**

 **Until next time xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi I'm so sorry for publishing this late. I recently started a 9-5 job and its really killing my brain cells and ability to think creatively! So there may be some delays from now on but I will try my best to keep them as short as possible. I did make this chapter extra long so hopefully you'll forgive me!**

 **Thank you for all the insightful reviews you have made- I really enjoy reading them! Sometimes more than writing this story!**

 **Anyway, as usual- If you like what you read, please tell me what you think! Or tell someone to read this. In fact just tell the whole world!**

 **(I didn't have time to proofread this closely so please overlook any grammatical errors.)**

They strapped into a car and Tony drove back into the city, with Shmeil providing adequate directions. It was not long before they reached their destination and Tony was carrying Tali into a distinct Israel coffee house. Shmeil had spoken about this woman very fondly for the entire car ride. So much so that his eyes lit up and his voice was raised slightly when he even spoke her name.

Delilah.

Tony had never heard of this woman before. Ziva certainly never mentioned her. But then again, as events have evidently shown him, Ziva was apparently a complete mystery to Tony. According to Shmeil, Delilah was the sister of Ziva's mother. This entire time, Tony was too occupied with all things relating to Eli to realise that Ziva had a mother and by default, another family that did not carry the 'David' name.

In fact, Tony realised that this was practically the first time he ever heard about anyone stemming from Ziva's maternal family side. He was aware that Ziva's mother died when she was young, but that was it.

The smell of ground coffee and cinnamon sparked his senses and brought him back to earth. They all sat down in a booth and Tony instantly ordered a black coffee with extra, extra sugar. His mind was instantly transported back to the first time his boss accidentally took a sip of his sugary mess and slapped in over the head for his terrible taste in coffee. He smiled at the thought.

What was that saying? Old habits die hard?

Tony was surprisingly nervous. He never did well to 'meet the family' with any of the women he was interested in. Actually, he could count the number of women on a single hand that made it past the 'one month relationship' stage.

Come to think of it, the last few instances involved a French drug lord, the Secretary of the Navy and a Son of Bitch Mossad Director.

* **(Author's note: I'm referring to Jeanne, Agent Barret and Ziva)**

Tony huffed at that thought. Who could blame him? After all, he was known for a being a serial womanizer back home. Maybe he learnt one lesson too many from Gibbs- How to be bad at relationships.

To calm his nerves, Tony distracted himself by surveying the coffeehouse. He absentmindedly played with his daughter's curly hair when he spotted two baristas working through their orders idly. There were a few tables filled, but no work that was too tiring for the single waitress on a Thursday late morning. There was a gentleman reading his newspaper in the corner, donned in a suit. Tony could easily tell from his business attire that the man had a little more than just change in his pocket. His attention shifted to the leggy woman who was transfixed on her female friend, engaging in a conversation. Had he known more Hebrew, and was childless, he would have definitely made his way over there with a line or two. They were his type of women.

"Tony," Shmeil said, breaking his attention from the women. Tony glanced over and saw a woman walk through the door. He could instantly tell that this woman was related to Ziva, without a doubt. Something about her long, curly black hair and doe eyes that gave her away. He instantly stood up and walked around to her.

Shmeil began with the introductions. "Delilah, please meet the very special Anthony DiNozzo." Delilah smiled warmly, her wrinkles tightening around her mouth. She bypassed Tony's extended hand, reaching for an embrace.

To Delilah, this wasn't any formal greeting, this was family.

"Tony, please meet Delilah Haddad, Ziva's aunt"

"Hi," Tony said and turned to a very curious looking Tali, peering from behind her father's coat. "This is my daughter Tali."

"Oh yes, I can see Ziva through every inch of her being" The woman poetically voiced. Tony could tell that she was older, around Orli's age. Delilah tentatively walked over to Tali, who still kept an eye on the foreign woman until she sat down, directly opposite. "I brought you something" She said in Hebrew. Instantly Tony inwardly grimaced. He could see how this whole coffee visit could easily just become one American vs Two Jews and a halfie. Even his _own_ halfie knew more Hebrew than he did. Delilah pulled out a doll. It barely extended past the length of Tony's hand when he passed it over to her daughter. "I made it just for you," Delilah said in English. Tali's eyes were instantly captured by the small doll and reached up to grab it. Tony could see from her curiosity that this gift was already well received and took the liberty of speaking on behalf of her daughter.

"Thank you," He said. Delilah smiled back and replied.

"She is the newest treasure in our family. I hoped to have met her sooner with Ziva but circumstances did not allow it."

"Okay." Tony sensed some hesitations in her response but knew it wasn't the time nor place to investigate them. He just met the woman after all.

"How are enjoying Tel Aviv?"

"Oh. Yeah. Magical. A real show stopping city" Tony replied. He gazed back on his past few visits to Tel Aviv and realised that none of them were particularly entertaining. Something about killing a rogue Mossad Agent and going on an amazing race to find his former partner didn't exactly classify as enjoyable….

"Oh, Tony is just getting used to this beautiful city," Shmeil chimed in. "He still has a lot more to explore."

"So, you will be staying for long?" Delilah asked, her interests peaked.

"Yeah, maybe." Tony replied vaguely. "I gotta tell you, I'm sorry but Ziva never mentioned that she had an aunt from her mother's side."

"Yes well," Delilah looked down and smoothed out her linen dress. "My family and the Davids, well let's just say that we have had some friction over the past. Ever since Ziva's mother's death….we have grown apart. Eli was very focused on his work and keeping his family-" She made a gesture with her hands, like an enclosed circle that seemed rigid. Tony nodded in understanding. Eli was a control freak, go figure.

"Did you ever meet Eli?" Delilah asked tentatively.

"Oh yes, a few times." Tony responded and then smiled. "We certainly had some friction over the past too." Delilah smiled back at his comment. They had a common understanding about Ziva's father.

"I missed out on a lot of key moments in my niece's life. She meant a lot to me. I am so very glad she moved to America. When I found out, I was relieved; she was out finally out of Eli's clutches." Tony listened to her words and kept his mouth firmly shut. She did not need to know exactly _how_ tumultuous Ziva's relationship was with her father.

"So, you hardly kept in touch." Tony stated.

"Within the last few years we certainly grew closer. I work as a translator, so my job takes me to many places in Israel. When Tali was born, I was stationed on the other side of the country and did not have the chance to visit. But I called often, and she called too. I knew Ziva was trying to forge broken bonds. And I could not have been happier when she first made contact. I think her mother would have been glad."

"Ah Rivka." Shmeil chimed in. "Ziva was the spitting image of her mother. If only you had the chance to meet her DiNozzo, those two women were like two peas in a pod."

"Honestly, one Ziva was enough for me, I would barely handle two." Tony joked and they all laughed. Tali joined in, completely oblivious to what was going on around her. Tony noticed that the entire time, she was intently listening to the conversation. She liked hearing the different tones, the sounds of words. It had to be for those reasons because Tony was fairly convinced that she understood about 3% of the conversation anyway.

They spent another hour just talking. Tony filled them in on his background briefly and in return, received a history lesson about Ziva's maternal family. Historically, their family dated back hundreds of years; apparently, they were known as the scribes to the powerful. So Delilah carried a family name entangled with a great degree of respect and an even greater degree of intelligence. Tony listened with an element of interest and self-reflection. He had _no_ idea what his family contributed to the greater good. Of course, Tony stemmed from a family of hard-working immigrants; he was the image of the American dream after all. His father sure made a successful investment or two in his life. Granted, the old man fell broke pretty frequently but still, Senior's money benefitted the someone right? For the greater good? Oh, who was he kidding? Back in the day, Tony was no stranger to using the " _My family came from a bunch of Italian renaissance painters_ " just to pull the chicks. That was as good as his family name was going to get.

It was terribly unfortunate that in death, Tony was learning so much about his best friend. He regretted never asking her questions about her life than ran deeper than a jealous query like, "Who's your new boyfriend?" Of course, she was a seemingly closed off person, but they pushed and pulled until they slowly met each other half way. With each day passing, Tony was opening himself more and more to Ziva. But apparently, it just wasn't enough to make her want to stay in DC. Things would have been so much different. She would be alive, for one.

Eventually the sun began to pass into the afternoon and Tony decided it was time to return back to their own house. The ride back to Shmeil's was pleasant. Tony's listened to whatever stories Shmeil had to recount. He exercised the same amount of attention that he would give Ducky when the old man rambled on about his days in Scotland. Tony smiled at the idea of putting Shmeil and Ducky in the same room together; that would easily be an effective interrogation tactic. The culprit would talk _just_ to shut those two up.

...

Tony spent his afternoon on the front porch, listening to the wind blowing through the trees, intertwined with his daughter's melodic tones and laughs as she played in the garden. Shmeil was regretfully excused himself to his study for a few hours to catch up on paperwork but Tony wasn't complaining. He welcomed the silence and the time alone with open arms. His hand was resting on the box of Ziva's things as he gazed out to the sunset. He was eager to sift through everything but every time, hesitated to lift his fingers and open the box. Sure he was intrigued in what he would find, but he was more scared. Tony initially planned to do this with his daughter but figured he needed his own, personal heads up before he showed her _anything._ If she was still the freaky, Mossad ninja he once knew so well, this box could easily have been filled her extensive knife collection, or _even_ mementos from all her kills. Tony smiled as he joked to himself. He glanced up one more time to see his daughter clearly preoccupied with her toys and then pried open the box.

There were definitely no knife collections, or snippets of hair and teeth from her victims. But instead there were pictures, and letters, a key on a metal chain and a small golden trinket. He picked up the trinket and examined it. It was a small flower, no larger than the size of his thumb and it was made from gold. He could easily tell from the weight of the small thing. He wondered whether it was a small family heirloom and mentally noted to ask Shmeil or Delilah at a later time. He placed the trinket back in the box and pulled out the first folded piece of paper. It was titled the 'Last Will and Testament of Eli David'. Instantly he folded it up again and placed it aside, feeling like he would be intruding if he read something so personal and private to Ziva. The next two pages he pulled were all written in Hebrew and he began to set them aside until his eyes glanced over a word, sprawled on another letter in the box. He instantly froze and absentmindedly placed whatever was in his hand on the bench and picked up the letter in question.

"Dear Tony," it started. Tony glanced up quickly to check on his daughter and leant back in his chair, daring to unfold the paper fully.

 _"7/29/2013  
Long time, no speak. I know it would have been much easier to call you directly. But if I am being honest, I would have not known what to say, or how to even say this. I know it has been some time since we have last spoken. I am currently sitting in front of the television and watching Casablanca. It is all dubbed in Hebrew, you would honestly hate how they have butchered it in translation. Anyway, I am rambling, I am sorry but it is only because I am struggling to put what I want to say in words. I thought writing a letter to you would be easier, but it is almost worse. _

_I am pregnant"_

Tony stared at the letter, knowing exactly what she was going to write but still turned the page over to find the other side blank as well. She never finished the letter. It was dated in 2013. Tony creased his eyebrows in confusion, wondering why she never finished it. Was she interrupted? Did she forget? Was she scared? He received his answer the moment he set that letter aside and picked up the second one.

" _5/02/2014_

 _My dearest Tony,_

 _Before I even begin this letter, you must be wondering why I am even sending you a letter instead of picking up the phone. Well I thought I would pay tribute to one of your timeless, stupid films and do this the classic, old school way. Firstly, please forgive me. I know it has been a long time since we have last spoke but there was a reason why I have stayed silent. I was afraid to tell you this sooner. I was not sure of how you would react or what you would say. I can only hope you will one day forgive me._

 _Tony, I was pregnant. And I had the baby earlier this year. It is a girl Tony, I named her Tali after my sister. I had been struggling to think of a way to tell you about her but I knew that I didn't want to keep this from you any longer than I already have. I need you to know this because she is-"_

Tony frantically flipped the paper to find it blank again. She failed to complete this one too and Tony was getting frustrated. His anger was slowly building as he checked the date of the second letter; 2014. She had planned to tell him _years ago_ , yet for some reason, failed to do so, again. He closed his eyes momentarily in frustration and placed the letter aside, picking up the final one that laid amongst the photos. This one was dated in 2015. Tony opened up the letter, expecting to reach another frustrating end but was winded by the words he read on the page. There were four simple words; 1 of which he never tired from hearing her speak and another 3, of which Tony wished to God he would have heard her whisper sooner.

" _07/20/2015_

 _Dear Tony,_

 _I love you."_

Maybe she never planned to finish any of these letters. Maybe she just wrote them as a way of laying her heart out, without ever intending Tony to read them. But low and behold, Tony was sitting there, his heart collapsing in itself as he continued to read and reread those words in her voice. He knew it in his heart, but he never _really_ knew it. Not until now at least.

His hands began to tremble, he was feeling overwhelmed. So, without reflecting or dwelling anymore, Tony folded everything back up and hastily placed them back into the box. He could not sift through these things anymore, he refused to read her writing because Tony knew that if he spent another minute looking through her things, he would crumble. He rapidly rubbed his eyes, as an attempt to clear any tears that were threatening to fall and walked over to his daughter. He needed a distraction badly. Not long after, Shmeil joined them and immediately noticed Tony's change of behaviour. He was distracted, distant and unfocused. Schmeil instantly received his answer as he spied Ziva's box laying on the front porch. Tony saw Shmeil glance over at the box and instantly looked the other way. He was in no mood to discuss anything Ziva-related. Shmeil knew that Tony would come to him when he was ready, so he stayed silent and they all went about their afternoon, pretending nothing had happened.

...

It came night fall and Tony's 'butler-babysitter-protective' detail came 'round to pick him and Tali up. Tony never planned to stay for more than a couple of days with Shmeil, he had his own life to get on with after all. But it helped knowing that there was someone close-by that meant something to Tony, and Ziva. The ride back to the safe house was quiet, as per usual. Tony's mind was cluttered and he was absolutely drained. He glanced down at the box between his hands and sucked in a silent breath. Tony needed a break from mourning, from feeling depressed all the time. He needed to drink or pop some sleeping pills or sleep with a pretty woman; he needed something to make himself feel alive, or dead to the world. He wasn't sure which one would give him greater satisfaction at that moment. He could hear Tali's voice behind his headrest and for the first time in his life, he needed her to shut up.

He just needed silence, he needed to not think, he needed to not be _needed_ all the fucking time. In an effort to prevent himself from wilding out, he hastily exited the car once they arrived and pulled his daughter out of her seat. He didn't even bother grabbing the bags nor did he wait for his agent to 'secure the premises' before he barged in the front door and pulled out his phone.

He ignored all his daughter's calls and dialled Orli's personal number and waited impatiently.

He had pulled a complete 180 in a total of 5 hours. He went from the persistent, strong single dad to the angry, emotional man with a kid he needed to get rid of. Everything about her reminded Tony of Ziva, and he could bare to look at Tali, let alone hear her speak. He just needed a break.

"Tony," Orli answered.

"Orli, I need you."

"Is everything okay?" Tony listened to her panicked outburst. He knew she was referring to Tali and replied.

"Yes, she is fine. I just need you to take her for a day, please." He began pacing the room.

"Are you okay?"

Tony paused for a second to answer. It was just long enough to indicate that he was the complete opposite of fine and Orli noticed immediately.

"Not really. I just need…..I am a terrible person I know, you can lecture me on the responsibilities and consequences of shitty parenting but I just need some time to clear my head. I'm not thinking straight, I'm not even seeing straight and I can't be there for….Tali if I don't even know what the hell I am doing or thinking right now."

"Okay Anthony, just take a breath-" Tony was in no mood to listen to her.

"Can you do this for me or not?" He asked aggressively. He didn't even care at that moment that if his daughter heard him. He felt like he was suffocating and he needed out.

"Yes of course, I am on my way." Tony hung up at the sound of Orli's answer with no response. He began packing his daughter an overnight bag, shoving anything and everything he could get his hands on.

He was not running away from his responsibilities, he kept telling himself that over and over again.

 _He just needed a small break._

He still loved his daughter more than he could love another human, he kept telling himself.

 _But he just needed a break._

He promised himself that once he got some time alone, he would bounce back to his usual self and everything would be fine.

 _But, he just needed a fucking break._

He eventually stopped ignoring his daughter, who was desperate for his attention and sat with her on the couch. She was singing a song to herself, but Tony blocked any voice he heard but except the one that kept ringing in his ears. The one that came alive in his mind the moment he began reading those letters. The one he heard the moment he sounded out the words, "I love you."

It wasn't long before there was a knock on the door and the agent let in Orli. She was dressed in her usual pant-suit and Tony momentarily wondered the woman slept in this attire too. As soon as he saw her, he bent down to his daughter, who was asleep on the couch by then and placed a long kiss on her forehead.

"I will see you very soon. Orli will take you. You know her, she's a real hoot. Be good little lady, I love you." He handed Tali to Orli. Orli examined Tony quickly, gaged his stance, his postured, his rigid figure. She was afraid that he was going to do something stupid but she trusted him nonetheless. Orli knew he would not risk anything to lose his daughter and this was just a minor hiccup on the road. He was a single parent for a hot minute, he wasn't expected to be perfect just yet? So Orli saved her impending lecture for a time when he could withstand it.

Instead, they exchanged a long glance before she said.

"I'll keep her safe" and walked out the door with a sleeping baby in her arms. As soon as she pulled out, Tony geared up and went outside to find the guarding agent.

"Give me the keys and the directions to the nearest bottle store."

 **YIKES! Tony is really falling down the rabbit hole in this chapter. I needed to write a small part of his character reacting this way. I am sure some of you who have experienced the loss of close loved one before (and I apologise if you have), understand the crazy emotions and roller coaster/emotional moments that happen. I certainly understand those feelings from personal experience. So it just made sense to me to show the world that Tony isn't always the fluffy teddy bear that he is usually portrayed as!**

 **Okay that's it from me. I'm excited to publish the next few chapters; we've now reached the point when things get exciting!**

 **xx**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi everyone, I know that it has been weeks but I unexpectedly fell really ill and had to go to hospital. As a result, I did not have any time or mental strength to write and publish any content and I rarely had access to a computer as well. So I apologise for the delayed content, I know some of you were getting very frustrated with me and I completely understand that. However, these circumstances were out of my control.**

 **As I missed about 3 weeks, I am going to do my best to publish more chapters in the next few days. However it also depends on how well I'm feeling. So if my writing isn't up to the standard it usually is, please bear with me.**

 **As for the story, this is where we start to pick some up more momentum. Hopefully, its compelling enough for you to stick with it for a little while longer. In the next few chapters, you're going to see some old and new characters pop up again. I hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think xx**

Tony sat on the floor and leant against the couch. His eyes were closed and he just sat there. Not thinking about anything in particular; not thinking at all really. It had been a very long time since he had sat in silence. Contrary to popular belief, Tony didn't mind being alone sometimes. Of course, he holds the honorary title of being the favourite class clown. However sometimes, even a clown needs to wipe off his face paint and take 30. Often on a Sunday, he would pop in a movie, one that didn't necessarily require a lot of concentration and lounge around. He'd turn the volume level down to a zero and watch the pictures because it gave him a little distraction whilst he embraced the silence. Often his attention was never really on the movies, they were just in the background as a safety blanket.

Ever since Tali, Tony rarely had the opportunity to sit, let alone sit in _silence._ When he made the rash decision to hand over Tali that night, he was positive, so _sure_ that wiping off his face paint and taking a 30 was exactly what he needed. However, as he sat on the floor, a bottle of unopened whiskey laying on the coffee table in front of him, his thoughts were telling him the exact opposite. It felt strange and unnatural to spend a night alone without is daughter. The moment that gut feeling began to spread through his body, he knew he fucked up. Tony had a habit of making rash, implusive decisions sometimes. He had to fight that element of his personality often as a navy cop.

Tony opened his eyes and stood up, disregarding the whiskey and walked over to the window. It was near dawn, the first rays of sunshine were filtering through the safe house and the birds were starting to sing. Tony would have called it a beautiful morning, if he wasn't so restless. He was basically counting down the minutes till it was time appropriate to call Orli and get his daughter back.

What would he tell her? Apologise? Give some candy as a sorry present? Even if she didn't understand, Tony did. He let her down; he promised to always be there and then didn't see it through. He's dished out a fair share of broken promises to women over his lifetime. Tony wasn't about to follow that habit through with the only girl important in his life.

"Rule 10: Never make a promise that you can't keep", Tony said as he added another rule to his own list.

Tony showered and changed his clothes, grabbed a quick 20 and then made some coffee. He was loitering around, trying to kill time. He even walked outside and striked up a conversation with the new, guarding Mossad Agent. About 2 hours passed before Tony could not keep this act up any longer. He finally picked up his phone and called Orli.

"Hello Tony," Orli greeted him with a-matter-of-fact tone.

"Hi, how is she?" Tony skipped any small talk and got down to business.

"She had a restless night, but she is fine." Tony let out a silent breath as he heard her reply. "If I am being honest Tony," Orli continued, "I am more worried about you."

"Oh, I'm aces, don't you worry." Tony moved on. "When can I pick her up?"

"How about I bring her over in 2 hours. She is still sleeping and she must eat and bathe." Orli's maternal instincts were in gear. She may not have had any children of her own, but Tali was definitely family to her.

Tony opened his mouth to reply when his eyes caught a glint on picture frame on the wall. It was Ziva and Orli standing in front of the farmhouse that perished in the fire. Tony knew that place very well. It was the last place he was with Ziva, and their time at the farmhouse was filled with very precious memories. It was in that moment that he realised he had never gone to see the site since they arrived. It was in the back of his mind when he arrived in Tel Aviv. He wanted to see the place with his own eyes, that way maybe, he could really accept what had happened. But of course, the opportunity never arose because he was constantly occupied with his daughter.

"Tony" Orli repeated his name and he brought himself back to reality.

"Actually, there's something that I gotta do. Can you keep her for another few hours? I'll call you when I'm back at the house."

"Of course, but Tony." Orli started and he cut her off.

"I'm fine honestly." He reassured her again.

"I know. Just, be careful." She replied and ended the call.

…..

Tony stepped out of the car and covered his face as the wind blew up a small gust of sand. The place looked more desolate than he remembered. But then again, his memories of luscious trees, the smell of chopped wood and the site of a beautiful farmhouse were burnt away by the fire. It was just, empty now.

Tony locked the car and walked towards where the townhouse would have stood. The ground was graffitied with charcoal, soot and burnt tar. It was ironic, to see such a black site exist amongst the green mountains and orange trees that grew not too far away. Ironic, yet sad. He wandered around, his investigative instincts kicking in. He looked for anything amongst the ruins, any clue that would point him in any direction. But almost immediately, he stopped moving the moment he heard footsteps behind him. He instantly looked up and saw a woman standing there with flowers in her hands, peering at him with curious eyes. Tony was about to conjure up a quick lie as to why he was standing in the middle of a crime scene when she spoke.

"You are him, are you not?" She said, her Israeli accent thick as she over-pronounced each word.

"Who?" Tony asked.

"Anthony."

….

"Well that depends." He replied casually.

"On what?" She enquired, gripping the flowers tighter.

"On who's asking?" She smiled at his reponse.

"Oh yes, you are definitely him then. Ziva always said that you were a smooth talker."

Tony creased his eyebrows in confusion and turned to face the woman fully.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?"

"My name is Amada, I am Ziva's cousin. Our mothers were sisters." Tony slowly nodded at this revelation, his guard still pinned up.

"Huh, that's funny. Delilah never mentioned that she had a daughter?"

"Oh no," Amada laughed at his response. "My mother passed away when I was a baby." She waved her hand in dismissal. "I would not be surprised if my Aunt never spoke of me. She was…how do you say.. the black sheep of the family?"

"Huh," Amada took a timid step closer to Tony. Tony glanced at the flowers.

"I come here every week, lay some fresh flowers here. It helps me cope with everything that has happened." Amada gestured to the dead flowers that laid on the ground a few metres away from them.

"Ziva and I reconnected when she came back. I spent a lot of nights here with her and her baby," Amada's gaze flickered to the burnt site behind Tony. "Tell me , is Tali okay? Every thing happened so quickly and I never got the chance to say goodbye before she was brought to you."

"Tali is fine," Tony reassured her.

"She is still holding onto that doggie that I bought her?"

Tony visibly relaxed at Amada's words and smiled "Oh Kalev. Yes, he's an honorary member of our family now." Amada laughed and nodded.

"How long have you been in Israel for? Where is Tali? Is she with you?" Amada looked around, as if she was expecting the little girl to jump out of the bushes.

"She's with a friend at the moment. I should be getting back to-."

"Oh please, maybe we can share a tea together? Get acquainted? I have heard so much about you from Ziva, it would be really lovely to sit down and talk, if you do not mind? There is a tea shop 15 minutes away that is very famous for its mint tea."

Tea shops? Tony smiled at how foreign that sentence sounded to him. He paused for a second and Amada spoke again.

"It was Ziva's favourite place around here. Come on, I will drive us there." She placed the flowers on the ground and began walking over to her car, without giving a chance for Tony to excuse himself and bail.

….

"So Anthony, Ziva told me much about you. You are a very accomplished man." Tony lightly huffed at her statement. It wasn't entirely false. Of course, Tony was very proud of his accomplishments as an NCIS fed. But sometimes, it's the things you achieve in your life, like happiness, fulfilment and love, which matter more.

"You'll have to forgive me, I'm only just starting to meet any of Ziva's family members." He said and she hushed him.

"That is no trouble. If I had known that you had already arrived here, I would have come knocking on your doorstep much earlier. Where are you staying at the moment?"

Tony went to open his mouth and give her the location of Orli's safehouse but hesitated.

"With a friend, Shmiel" He lied. Family or not, he still knew the rules about giving up a safehouse.

"Pinkus?" She asked?

"The very same." He confirmed. "You know him?"

"Of sure. Like I said, I spent much time with Ziva over the past few years." She poured Tea for the both of them.

"So did they manage to retrieve anything from the house?" Tony looked at her in slight confusion. "I mean," She began to clarify. "I was hoping that Tali would not have lost her whole livelihood in that fire."

"Oh. Yeah, a few boxes worth of stuff." Tony's mind flashed back to the remainder of Ziva's possessions in the corner of Shmiel's house. He knew exactly what they were the moment he saw the boxes. But he mentally noted to deal with that situation later.

"Like what exactly? Is there anything I can get for her?" Amada asked.

"No, Tali is fine. I'm taking care of her now." Tony replied, internally wincing at his own words. He glanced at the clock and timed another 20 minutes before he would make an excuse to leave. I missed her daughter terribly, that was no secret to him.

They chatted some more about Amada and her background. She was a recent graduate in environmental science. Tony grew to like her in the few moments that they shared. She seemed very intelligent and quick-witted. He could see how easily Ziva would have gotten along with her.

Before long, Tony's 20 minutes were up and Amada offered to drive him back to his car.

"I would really like to see her sometime if that is okay. Do you have a number that I can contact you on? Maybe we can organise another time to meet?" Amada asked politely as she neared his vehicle.

"Sure," They exchanged numbers and Amada pulled Tony into an embrace.

"I can why Ziva was so fond of you. You are a good man Tony." Amada smiled and Tony shrugged his shoulders with a smile.

"Thanks. I'll see you around Amada." Tony got in his car and drove back to the safe house, his thoughts seemingly settled after a tumultuous 24 hours. As soon as he drove awa, Tony called Orli and organised a drop off time for Tali. With any luck, he would be seeing his girl at most 15 minutes after he arrived back.

True to her word, Orli arrived not a minute late, with an excited little girl in her hands. The moment Tony opened the door, Tali was on the ground and running towards him. In an attempt to stop her from crashing into his legs, Tony swooped her up in her arms and gave her a big hug. He missed her so damn much. It was a mystery as to why he would have ever let her go in the first place.

"Hey baby girl." He said lowly into her curls. Tali placed both her hands on each of his cheeks and squished his face. She was happy, he could tell. He figured that Tali missed him just as much too. A movement from his peripheral eye caught his attention and he realised that Orli was still standing that. Without placing Tali on the ground, Tony walked up to Orli and embraced her. He hoped that small action was enough explanation and apology for his behaviour and he could feel from how tightly she hugged him back, it was more than enough for Orli.

"Nice to see you again Tony. I am afraid I cannot stay for long, I have business matters to attend to." He nodded in acknowledgement and turned back to his girl.

"Thank you Orli."

"Of course, but you owe me an explanation for all this. And do not think that I will not collect from you"

"You're the director of Mossad, I couldn't even get something passed you even if I tried" Orli smiled in satisfaction at the sound of his words and headed towards the door.

"Actually," Tony began, stopping her. "I met someone today. Amada, you know her? She's Ziva's family." Orli didn't turn around instantly.

"Who?" Orli asked again, her hand still gripping the door handle.

"Amada, Ziva's cousin. Their mothers were sisters apparently. Really nice woman, we had _tea_ together." Tony said with a smile. However, as he watched Orli turn around and saw her face, his relaxed temperament instantly dissolved.

"Her mother's side? That is exactly she said?"

"Why," Tony asked, knowing that something was wrong.

Orli instantly walked over to the bedroom and Tony immediately followed and placed Tali on bed before joining her in the bathroom.

"What did you tell her? Did you tell her that you were staying here? What did you talk about?"

"What is going on?" Tony asked again. He hated it when people did this to him.

"Just answer the question Anthony."

"Um" He scrambled through his memories for the answers, "We spoke about her. She asked me where I was staying, I said Shmiel's house. We exchanged phone numbers and said we would meet later. She wanted to see Tali again.."

Orli didn't speak for a second and Tony grabbed her shoulders in an attempt to bring her back to reality. "Orli," he said desperately.

Orli sighed and looked at Tony with solemn eyes.

"Tony, Ziva had a cousin, yes. Her name was Amada. But she died in the same explosion as Tali years ago. Delilah is her only living relative on her mother's side." He immediately dropped his hands and felt his heart tighten.

"Then who the hell was I speaking to?"

She looked back at him, ignoring his question and said. "We need to get you out of here."

 **Cliff-hanger I know! I'm a sucker for them. But fear not! You won't have to wait for long.**

 **xx**

 **Yours truly**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello! I'm back :)**

 **Hopefully I furiously finished this chapter 10 minutes ago because I didn't want to keep you waiting any longer!**

 **As usual, please let me know what you think :)**

 **xx**

Orli instantly held out her hand.

"Give me your phone. If she already has your number, we must assume that she has tried to track down your location and discovered where you are."

Too shaken to say anything, Tony simply pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it over. Orli walked into the main bedroom and headed towards the door.

"Pack your things, we will leave in 5 minutes. I will alert my team on what has happened and destroy this thing." She lifted her hand up to signal the phone.

"Orli, just stop for a second. Talk to me. Who was that? What's going on? What kind of danger are we in?" He grabbed Orli's arm before she would disappear. Orli gently placed her hand over Tony's that still clung onto her sleeve.

"There is much that we have yet to discuss Tony. Things that Eli has done, that Ziva has done, they may have come back to haunt us. I was hoping that we would never have to face this problem; that is why I took so many precautions to keep you two safe. But I am afraid I was not successful. I do not know who that woman was, but I have a feeling I know who sent her. Let us just get out of here and somewhere safe. I will explain everything then." She patted Tony's hand once, as if to signal the end of the conversation but Tony tugged her back once more.

"Orli, she knew things. Things about me, about Tali." He needed to emphasize this; how familiar she was, how much she knew.

"I know Tony, we will figure this out. Just get your things together." Orli replied once more and walked away without giving a chance for Tony to push her further.

Almost instantly, Tony reached behind and felt for his gun at the back of his jeans.

"Abba," Tali's voice sounded behind him and Tony kicked into gear.

"We're going on another trip somewhere little lady," He said as he grabbed their bags and began to hastily shove their clothes in.

He cleared out everything in the bathroom and bedroom within minutes as Tali watched on, Kalev in her arms. Tony felt his stomach churn as he glanced at her plush toy. How could that woman know so much about Tali. But more importantly, he was a very trained investigator. It was his job to pick up on anything suspicious for the most part of 13 years, yet how did _none_ of his spidey instincts tingle when he met 'Amada'? She was beautiful enough to pass as a relative of Ziva. She also looked the age too. There was nothing dangerous about Amada that threw Tony off. Yet she was the definition of dangerous in Tony's mind. Hell, he didn't even know if she was _actually_ Israeli. Tony shook his head in frustration. Was he losing his touch? Or was she damn good at her job?

"Frickin Israelis," He glanced up at Tali. "You know, one of these days, I would love to meet one that didn't come with emotional baggage, knew how to use a contraction and wasn't out to kill me. Am I asking for too much?"

Tony didn't get the chance to answer that question himself as Orli entered and grabbed a bag from the bed.

"We must leave now." Tony didn't say a word as he picked up his daughter and swung his bag over his shoulder. He quickly walked into the kitchen and placed Tali on the counter. He opened a drawer, picked up a medium sized knife and rolled up his left jean pants to tuck the knife in.

"Rule No.9 Tali- Never go anywhere without a knife. Let's hope you never have to use that one." He picked up his daughter again and Orli through the living room but stopped as he spied the photo of Ziva and Tali on the mantelpiece. It was sitting a picture frame, in the exact position as Tony had originally placed it. Without thinking twice, Tony walked over and picked up the photo with his remaining free hand and walked out the door.

...

"Where are we going?" Tony asked as he clutched onto his daughter. The Mossad agent at the helm was driving faster than Gibbs on a good day.

"Somewhere safe," Orli replied vaguely. Her eyes were glued to a laptop screen in front of her.

"Orli, when I told her that I was staying at Shmiel's house, she acted as if she already knew the guy. You need to send an agent or two over to see if he's okay."

"I already have Tony, do not worry." Orli quickly replied and glanced back at the screen.

Tony opened his mouth again to question her on what the hell was going on but she picked up her phone and dialled a number. Launching into a furiously long and fast conversation in Hebrew, Tony could only pick on a words like 'safe, run, they know'. It wasn't much but it was enough for Tony to understand that she was talking about him and Tali.

Before long, the car came to an abrupt holt and Orli watched as the agents got out and secured the area, her ear still glued to the phone. As soon as they signalled 'all clear', Orli launched out of her seat and grabbed Tali, leaving Tony to pick up the bags and follow her inside. Tony did not think twice about the bags as he threw them down near the kitchen table and followed Orli into the bedroom.

"Where are we." He demanded rather than posing a question. He was sick of beating around the bush with Orli. He spent the better part of his lifetime protecting other people, he wasn't used to being kept out of the dark.

"Another safe house. It is temporary until we get you out of the country."

"Away from whom?! Who am I running from Orli?" Tony raised his voice, forgetting that his daughter was in the room with them.

"Tony, I cannot just brief you whenever you see fit. There are protocols involved," Orli snapped.

"Oh yes you can," Tony fought back, "Especially when it involves someone we _both_ care about here." She huffed at Tony's vehemently spoken words, knowing perfectly well that he was speaking the truth. This was more than just a threat to national security. This was a threat to someone she loves dearly; her family. It was all personal.

She raised her finger to Tony and then silently walked out of the room. Tony could hear her speaking to some agents and he sat next to her daughter on the bed, handing her a small water bottle to drink from. Not long after, Orli returned and closed the door. She turned to face Tony and paused

"I asked for some privacy." She said, as if to fill the dead air between them. She then walked over to a laptop that sat on a table and opened it up. She tapped away on the keys for a few seconds and then swivelled the screen to face Tony.

"Was this the woman you met?" Tony did not need to glance at the woman's face for more than a second to know.

"No, it was not her. But," He pointed to the tattoo that was on the out part of her right hand. It was a small image, almost resembling a family crest of some sort. "Amada…or whoever she was had the same tattoo."

Orli sighed at that revelation. "As I thought." She closed the laptop and looked at Tony.

"What I am about to tell you is classified Tony. Less than 10 people knew about this black operation that took place 9 years ago. And over half of them are dead now. I am telling you this because I need to emphasize the gravity of the situation that we are in."

"Okay," Tony replied, almost dismissing Orli's grave warning. "Tell me."

….

"About a decade ago, Mossad was tasked with infiltrating the Palestinian Liberation Organisation,"

"PLO," Tony affirmed and Orli nodded.

"It was one of many missions that were conducted, which involved infiltrating a Palestinian organisation. But this one in particular was of high importance. It was named Operation Sunshine."

"Sunshine involved 4 agents, posed as members of the PLO. They were placed in the organisation as a sleeper cell, intended on waiting out for about 4 years before their mission commenced. However, complications arose and they were forced into action, 5 months into the mission." Orli rubbed her brow and leant back in her chair.

"What was their task?" Tony questioned, glancing down as he felt Tali walk over and wrap her arms around his leg. He bent down and picked her up, placing her in his lap. Orli watched them two with a fond look on her face before she continued, her voice lowered and secretive.

"To steal a file. The tension between Hamas and the PLO was intensifying. Each organisation was getting sloppy with their attacks on the Israeli people because they were more focused on gaining the upper hand. It was a power struggle in Palestine to say the least." Orli continued.

Tony listened to these words, despite already fully aware of the history between the different Palestinian organisations. Yet, he remained silent and let Orli continue.

"For the agents, it was their mission to infiltrate whilst the PLO defences were weak and steal this file. According to their briefing, the file contained lists of handlers, importers and exporters of the PLO's small and big arms, including a comprehensive list of their nuclear arms. Their entire arms trafficking strategies were detailed within this file. And Mossad….and Eli, wanted it." Orli stood up and walked over to the bed, recomposing herself.

"Ziva was one of these agents, wasn't she?" Tony stated, knowing the answer.

"Yes." Orli simply replied. "She was a very skilled agent, and eager to jump at any chance to prove that she wasn't _just_ the daughter of the director." Tony nodded at this comment. He was too familiar with that streak in Ziva to always prove herself.

"They successfully retrieved the file, and lost two of their agents as a result."

"So, what happened?" Tony pressed.

"You can say many things about Eli, but you cannot deny that he was a politically astute man. He was always thinking ahead, always anticipating his enemy's move. This mission was just an example of his strategic character. Eli always wanted to resolve these Israeli-Palestinian tensions diplomatically, between the parties directly involved. In fact, He laughed at the Americans who believed their involvement was key to a resolution.

He wanted to bring both PLO and the Israeli Government to the table and reach a resolution and he believed that revealing some of the information in the file was the perfect bargaining chip to give us the upper hand."

"You mean blackmail," Tony corrected him and Orli laughed.

"Like I said, astute". She continued on, "Countless attempts were made to bring this into action and each time, they failed. So, instead of threatening to go public with this file; to destroy the image of Palestine within the international community once and for all, he did otherwise. Eli used the information instead to slowly shut down exploiters and traffickers that were directly involved in providing weaponry and ammunition to the Palestinians. These were his most recent actions before he was killed."

There was a silence that settled between them.

"There was only one file Tony. Prime Minister Sharon and Eli agreed that if 'Sunshine' failed, or if the file was released to the public, the Israeli government would play dumb to the whole situation. In every sense to the word, this mission was clandestine. Eli agreed to keep the file secret, only he knew of its whereabouts and there was no documentation to prove its existence either."

"So where is it now?" Tony asked, leaning into the conversation.

"Therein lies the problem." Orli sighed. "When Eli was killed, I was certain that it was the work of the Palestinians until I followed the trail to Berlin. Once it was known that Bodnar was behind his death, I was certain that the file was left untouched, where Eli had hidden it. It was only recently that I discovered that the file was hidden in the farmhouse, with Ziva. Eli must have spoken to her about how to proceed in the event of his death."

"Ziva.." Tony trailed off.

"Yes."

Tony stood up and began to pace the room. He was still processing all this information: the mystery woman, the mystery file, the mystery mission.

"But the fire, the farmhouse- that was Kort"

Orli paused and Tony felt his heart skip a beat.

"That was Kort right?" Tony asked once again, with desperation in his voice.

"We are not sure. I mean, yes- he was the one who executed the blast but.. according to our intel, he was working for the Palestinians. However, we are not sure whether it was the PLO to be exact"

"Huh, well that's splendid." Tony huffed.

"I know what you're thinking-" Orli started,

"Oh lady, believe me you couldn't possibly know what I'm thinking right now. You're MOSSAD, you're supposed to have eyes and ears up everybody's asses. And yet, you failed to do the ONE job you're good at for one of the most important missions that you have ever conducted?" Tony said, exasperated.

Orli went to open her mouth, to defend the actions- or lack thereof, of her organisation but was immediately cut off.

"So that woman, that –Amada woman- she's PLO?"

"Yes,"

"And she knows about Tali?"

"Yes,"

"And the file, was that destroyed in the fire too?"

"No,"

"How do you know?"

"Because Ziva assured me." Tony's head spun around so fast he could have broken it.

"What?" He asked her, his voice ringing so low that Orli barely heard what he said. Had he just heard what he think he did? Orli opened and closed her mouth a few times, trying to figure out what to say.

"She…Ziva kept a small box filled with important documents in a chest drawer in Tali's room. It was hidden in plain site; no one would ever think to check the nursery room of a 2 year old."

It was in that moment, Orli had confirmed a suspicion that Tony had held close to his heart for a long time. There was something she was keeping from him. Ever since he came to Israel, he could tell that there was something she was hiding from him. With every hesitant remark, every vague answer; Tony's gut feelings were off the charts. But he couldn't bring himself to question her; he had a feeling, he didn't want to entertain any thought that could crush him if not proven true.

They shared a long, silent look that spoke a thousand words. Orli felt her insides on fire; she slipped up, big time. There was a plan and she was tasked to stick to it, by every means. But in that look Tony gave her, she knew. She knew that _he_ knew; he was just too afraid to ask in case his suspicions were proven wrong. Orli wanted to help him, give him that answers that he so desperately sought. She could tell how much he was struggling, but her hands were tied. So she decided on the next best thing. If she couldn't reveal anything she was forbidden to, she would _at least_ point him in the right direction, literally.

"You need to go to Paris,"

"Why?"

"Because we need to get you out of the country. I know that you are a very capable agent and you can take care of yourself Tony. But I cannot allow you to stay when there is even the slightest possibility that something could happen to you or Tali, now that your presence has been known."

"But Paris-"

"-Is that last place that they would think to look," Orli cut him off. "Please, get some rest. I will have an agent bring you and Tali some food. Get a few hours sleep and I will sort everything out and return with more information."

Tony laughed, his throat feeling extremely dry.

"I don't even get a say in this, do I?"

"Absolutely not," Orli smiled back. Tony nodded his head gently, exhaustion slowly taking over. He paused again before answering.

"Okay, fine."

 **There you have it! I have already started writing the next chapter, but please give me a few more days to complete it.**

 **XX Yours truly**


	8. AUTHOR UPDATE- CHAPTER RELEASES

Hi everybody.

I know I have been absent for some time. If you had read my previous author notes, I had mentioned how I feel extremely ill and had to be hospitalised for a little while. The effects of being ill lingered for a really long time and I lost all my mental energy I had at the beginning of this story. That's why I went off the grid at little bit because I just could not write anything and believe me, I tried.

So in an effort to not disrespect you all, I just wanted to let you know that I WILL be continuing this story, however I am going to finish it all before I start posting again. I've already started writing (I got my mojo back!). I think I am aiming for a total of 15-20 more chapters till completion and I'm already half way! So I really don't want to keep you guys waiting so I'm going to keep writing until I finish the whole thing and repost again.

I'm sorry if I had disappointed you all. This is the best that I can do with the situation at hand.

xx Yours truly


End file.
